1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an information system, and more particularly to a system and method for synchronizing the replay of a pre-recorded program between a plurality of playback devices utilizing closed-caption data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Both ReplayTV (trademark of REPLAY NETWORKS, INC., of Palo Alto, Calif.) and TiVo (trademark of TIVO, Inc., of Sunnyvale, Calif.) are the first wave of a new type of “VCR” that gives the viewer new abilities to capture and manipulate the stream of television shows, which flow from their cable and satellite systems. These personal interactive devices act as a personal assistant by recording programs that interest viewers and assisting the viewers to watch the recorded programs when they wish. Both devices have the ability to pause/rewind programs as they are broadcast, to watch a recorded program while recording another, to record for both short and long-term archival, and other related features including an electronic program guide (EPG), time-shifted viewing, and unattended recording of programs.
Currently, many efforts are made to develop integrated information systems that combine the above-described personal interactive devices and the Internet technologies to give new abilities to interact between users. For example, in a web-browsing environment, end user systems are linked together via the Internet with enhanced information delivery and interactive features, such as teleconferencing, video conferencing, etc. Some features allow two different end users to interact with the on-screen content by jumping to a specific section of information. To this end, one end user typically must transmit the concerned information to the other end user. However, such transmission requires a large bandwidth. In addition, it is not possible to search and jump to the related information between users as they interact together. Accordingly, the present invention proposes a mechanism for synchronizing the content being displayed on two or more playback systems, such that the replay of a particular portion of the program can be performed simultaneously.